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Beulah Bondi
Imported from wikipedia:Beulah Bondi. Beulah Bondi (May 3, 1888 – January 11, 1981)According to the State of California. California Death Index, 1940-1997. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California. At Ancestry.com was an American actress.Obituary Variety, January 21, 1981. Bondi began her acting career as a young child in theater, and after establishing herself as a stage actress, she reprised her role in Street Scene for the 1931 film version. She played supporting roles in several films during the 1930s, and was twice nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She played the mother of James Stewart in four films, including Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and It's a Wonderful Life (1946). She continued acting into her later years, and won an Emmy Award for an appearance in the television series The Waltons in 1976. Theater and films Bondi was born as Beulah Bondy in Valparaiso, the daughter of Eva (née Marble) and Adolphe Bondy.Beulah Bondi Bondi began her acting career on the stage at age seven, playing the title role in the play Little Lord Fauntleroy in a production at the Memorial Opera House in Valparaiso, Indiana. She graduated from the Frances Shimer Academy (later Shimer College) in 1907, and gained her Bachelors and Masters degrees in oratory at Valparaiso University in 1916 and 1918, and moved to film in the 1930s. Her debut movie role was as "Emma Jones" in Elmer Rice's Street Scene (1931), which starred Sylvia Sidney, and in which Bondi reprised her stage role, followed by "Mrs. Davidson" in Rain (1932), which starred Joan Crawford and Walter Huston. She was one of the first five women to be nominated for an Academy Award in the newly-created category of "Best Supporting Actress" for her work in The Gorgeous Hussy, although she lost the award to Gale Sondergaard. Two years later, she was nominated again for Of Human Hearts, and lost again, but her reputation as a character actress kept her employed. She would most often be seen in the role of the mother of the star of the film for the rest of her career, with the exception of Make Way for Tomorrow (1937) as the abandoned Depression-era 'Ma' Cooper. She often played mature roles in her early film career even though she was only in her early 40s. Bondi played James Stewart’s mother in four films: It's a Wonderful Life, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Of Human Hearts and Vivacious Lady. Television Her television credits include Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Howard Richardson's Ark of Safety on the Goodyear Television Playhouse. She made her final appearances as Martha Corinne Walton on The Waltons in the episodes "The Conflict" (9/74) and "The Pony Cart" (12/76). She received an Emmy award for her performance in the latter episode. When her name was called, it first appeared that she was not present, but she was given a standing ovation as she walked slowly to the podium, where she thanked everyone for honoring her while she was still alive. Despite the fact that she was known for playing mother figures, Bondi never married in real life. She died from pulmonary complications due to broken ribs suffered when she tripped over her cat on January 11, 1981, aged 92. Partial filmography *''Street Scene'' (1931) *''Rain'' (1932) *''Finishing School'' (1934) *''The Invisible Ray'' (1936) *''The Trail of the Lonesome Pine'' (1936) *''Hearts Divided'' (1936) *''The Gorgeous Hussy'' (1936) *''Maid of Salem'' (1937) *''Make Way for Tomorrow'' (1937) *''The Sisters'' (1938) *''The Buccaneer'' (1938) *''Of Human Hearts'' (1938) *''Vivacious Lady'' (1938) *''On Borrowed Time'' (1939) *''The Under-Pup'' (1939) *''Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' (1939) *''Remember the Night'' (1940) *''Our Town'' (1940) *''Penny Serenade'' (1941) *''The Shepherd of the Hills'' (1941) *''One Foot in Heaven'' (1941) *''Watch on the Rhine'' (1943) * Tonight We Raid Calais (1943) *''The Very Thought of You'' (1944) *''The Southerner'' (1945) *''Back to Bataan'' (1945) *''Sister Kenny'' (1946) *''It's a Wonderful Life'' (1946) *''The Sainted Sisters'' (1948) *''The Snake Pit'' (1948) *''So Dear to My Heart'' (1948) *''Mr. Soft Touch'' (1949) *''Reign of Terror'' (1949) *''The Baron of Arizona'' (1950) *''The Furies'' (1950) *''Lone Star'' (1952) *''Latin Lovers'' (1953) *''Track of the Cat'' (1954) *''Back from Eternity'' (1956) *''The Unholy Wife'' (1957) *''A Summer Place'' (1959) *''Tammy Tell Me True'' (1961) *''Tammy and the Doctor'' (1963) References Further reading *commons:Beulah Bondi * * * * *Great Character Actors *What-A-Character Category:Valparaiso University alumni Category:Shimerians who received major awards